Walking the Walk

Bus Service in Grand Teton and Yellowstone is Long Overdue

Car culture is the double-edged sword of the National Park experience. Roads inside our parks make it easy for the elderly, the disabled and families with small children to get a taste of the grandeur and beauty of these places. But for the sake of air quality and the visitor experience, it's time the National Park Service got serious about offering bus service in Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks. In some areas, private vehicle traffic should be restricted to get visitors out of their cars.

THE LEGACY OF KENTON CARNEGIE

What Could Make the Wolf Even More Controversial?

Anything wolf makes big headlines--and, it seems, is never old news.

For fourteen years since conservationists and the federal government brought the wolf back to the northern Rockies (plus several years leading up to the reintroduction), anything and everything about the Big Dog has been, to say the least, controversial.

But something hasn't happened yet that could make it much more contentious.

Guest Column

Outdoor Leaders Praise Passage of Climate Bill

The passage of the Waxman-Markey Climate bill is a historic, bold step in the right direction in terms of embracing innovative and sustained business practice.

Hailed globally as a “sea of change in U. S. policy on climate,” this legislation will reshape energy policy by capping greenhouse gas emissions for the first time, boost production and investment in renewable electricity, reduce our dependence on foreign oil, and tend to our cherished natural resources. Concurrently, the bill will create jobs here in the United States and help businesses and communities hardest hit by these new changes.

We commend our forward thinking leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives and say job well done.

NOW CALLED WHOLESALE SPORTS

UFA Rebrands Its 15 Sportsman’s Warehouse Stores

Putting a formal stamp on its difficult transaction that netted it 15 stores from the bankrupt Sportsman's Warehouse chain, UFA Co-operative Limited,of Calgary, Alberta, has quickly rebranded the stores as part of the Wholesale Sports chain it has owned and operated for many years in Canada.

The new signs are going up right now, says Natalie Dawes, of UFA, but customers still might find temporary banners in some locations.

Beetle Hysteria Again

Beetle hysteria has raised its head again, and I am not talking about the Fab four. A prominent article in the New York Times titled “Tiny Beetle Adds New Dynamic to Forest Fire Control Efforts” quotes many foresters and others who suggest that beetle-kill trees across the West will create larger wildfires and by implications are “destroying” our forests.

For instance, Montana’s State Forester Bob Harrington said as much at conference recently, as in the article. While it may seem “intuitively obvious” that dead trees will lead to more fires, there is little scientific evidence to support the contention that beetle-killed trees substantially increases risk of large blazes. In fact, there is evidence to suggest otherwise.

At the heart of this and many other media reports are flawed assumptions about fires, what constitutes a healthy forest, and the options available to humans in face of natural processes that are inconvenient and get in the way of our designs.

Update

United Nations Will Study Threats to Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park

The United Nations plans to send a fact-finding mission to Canada to investigate environmental threats to the Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park due to proposed coal and energy mining activity in the area.

Representatives of U.S. and Canadian conservation groups opposed to mining activity that could harm the water quality and wildlife of the Flathead River Valley are in Seville, Spain, this week for a meeting of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), petitioning to have Waterton-Glacier declared a “World Heritage Site in Danger.”

By a unanimous vote, the 21-country panel that governs those issues decided Friday to send a mission to the region to “evaluate and provide recommendations on the requirements for ensuring the protection” of Waterton-Glacier, according to Will Hammerquist of the National Parks Conservation Association, who has been attending the conference in Seville this week. The committee requested a report on the potential impacts of proposed natural resource development operations in the Flathead River Valley due Feb. 1 of next year.

International Peace Park Goes Overseas

Environmental Groups Seek UN Designation to Expand Waterton-Glacier Into BC

Although Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park already spans the Canadian-U.S. divide, Canadian and American environmental groups are hoping to cross another border, a provincial one, to fully protect the pristine wilderness.

And to do so, they're taking the cause to the UN.

On June 27, representatives from a coalition of 11 groups in the United States and Canada will travel to Seville, Spain, to speak to the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. The groups will ask that the park, which includes Glacier National Park in Montana and Waterton Lakes National Park in Alberta, be designated a “World Heritage Site in Danger.”

Sea Stories in Seattle

Celebrating the Northwest’s Floating World

There's a proposal making the rounds to designate a large chunk of Washington's coastline a National Maritime Heritage Area. Such an area would require an act of Congress.

The proposed Heritage zone would extend up Washington's Pacific coast from Gray's Harbor and include the Strait of Juan de Fuca and San Juan Islands. It would run south from the Canadian border to the southern tip of Puget Sound. In Seattle, it would encompass Salmon Bay, the Lake Washington Ship Canal and Lake Union. It would extend 1/4 mile inland, and could include other nearby designated sites.

The main idea is to provide a way to recognize Washington's maritime history and industry, from Coast Salish cedar canoes to old lighthouses, from World War II shipyards to houseboat communities. A Heritage Area designation allows locals to coordinate ways to recognize and protect local historic sites and structures, promote tourism, and develop a narrative that ties-in life today. It also views cultural heritage to be seen broadly, connected to living, inhabited, and industrious contemporary landscapes. A Heritage Area is no wilderness National Park, though the Park Service does provide technical assistance.

IS ANOTHER LAYER OF PROTECTION WORTH THE COST?

Is National Park Wilderness a Good Idea?

If you've read any of my past columns, you know I'm a strong proponent of designating more Wilderness, but when considering whether to support including our national parks under the National Wilderness Preservation System, I have to wonder if this is a good idea. Here's why.